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We all need to be a little more like Samantha Jones…

I love Sex and the City. Whenever it is on, no matter what episode or how many times I’ve seen it, I’ll watch it, start – middle – end with my eyes glued to the screen. SATC taught me so many life lessons, it was like living through the lives of four women, who each made the mistake first, recouped, deliberated then shared their ‘little black book of triumphs and disasters’ with me and the rest of the world to learn from. I truly believe its a modern, visual equivalent of classic American literature, and should be studied just like Catcher in the Rye or The Great Gatsby. Aside from the nudity, language, drug use etc, which is really just entertainment fluff (although the reality of being an adult), the topics dealt with in the show are a better display of life education than any classroom could attempt.

SATC pushed the envelope, it had the guts to bring to light controversial topics, from women having casual sex, children outside of marriage, divorce, adultery, the list goes on. However, one particular issue it began conversion around, and only in its second episode, was women and body issues. In Season 1, Episode 2 ‘Models vs. Mortals’, the four girls deliberate on their insecurities, and are angered by the ‘ideal’ of tall, skinny models. In the clip below, the girls attack thin models before the start to pick apart body parts of their own they’re dissatisfied with. In terms of body shaming (regardless of size) I hate this scene, but I also love it because it was revolutionary at the time. The big reason why I love this scene so much is Samantha’s response, she has nothing bad to say about her body, she has embraced it wholeheartedly!

There are so many lessons to be gained from this episode.

Don’t attack the skinny frames of models, that is their job, and while it may be thin and unrealistic for most people, they normally have the frame that supports a smaller BMI.

If someone is happy with their body, don’t treat them like they are ‘stuck-up’ or ‘vain’, learn from them and their body positivity.

Don’t fat talk, “I’m fat”, “I hate my arms” etc. No one likes to be around people like this because it makes them start to feel insecure about themselves as well. Don’t search for faults

Take a note from SAMANTHA’s book. Embrace what you have, know that no person who is beautiful, is without flaw. Imperfections create interest, which is enticing, human and natural.

One thought on “We all need to be a little more like Samantha Jones…”

Love this post – you raised so many important points. I HATE HATE HATE to hear other girls talk about their bodies negatively 1) because it makes me feel insecure about mine and 2) because I recognise their behaviour in myself. It’s sad, really.

Body positivity is something we should all strive for and I think that starts with stopping the attacks on other people’s bodies. Of course models are considered ideally beautiful by society’s standards, but that doesn’t mean they’re healthy or happy. It’s not like they deserve less respect or compassion just because they’re models. They probably have the same amount of insecurity as any of us, if not more because they are a judged on their appearance for a living.